Janice Schakowsky: “today's passage of H.R. 1851, the Section 8 Voucher Act (SERVA) will improve greatly the housing voucher system--which…”

“today's passage of H.R. 1851, the Section 8 Voucher Act (SERVA) will improve greatly the housing voucher system--which is already successful and has been described by the Administration as one of the federal government's most effective programs. Safe and affordable housing is one of my priorities and should be a national priority. Section 8 vouchers are a great tool for getting families into decent homes. Studies have shown that Section 8 vouchers reduce homelessness, overcrowding, and frequent moves from apartment to apartment. Affordable housing is critical to strong families and communities, and vouchers have allowed families to move to lower-poverty neighborhoods with better schools and less exposure to crime. H.R. 1851 will only increase the success of Section 8 vouchers, which currently provides housing assistance to more than 2 million families, by making the program more efficient and more effective. From 2004 to 2006, voucher funds were allocated using a series of ineffectual formulas that gave some agencies less funding than they needed to cover the costs of their vouchers--forcing them to cut back for needy families--while other agencies were given more funds than they could use. This resulted in $1.4 billion of unused funds and, more importantly, 150,000 more low-income families without vouchers. SERVA would base funding on the actual cost of each agency's vouchers in the previous year.”